Rape: girl’s father gets 10-year sentence

Sudheer, a man who was found guilty of raping his minor daughter and forcing her into prostitution, was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment by the Additional District court here on Wednesday. A fine of Rs.1 lakh was imposed on the man who was found guilty of forcing the child to have intercourse, prostitution, and rape. He was sentenced to another six months for cruelty to the child under the Juvenile Justice Act.

The court found Omana, who acted as an agent, guilty of similar crimes. She was sentenced to seven years and a fine of Rs.50,000. Fourth accused Aneesh was found guilty of buying the girl for prostitution and gang rape. He has been sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment and to pay a fine of Rs.75,000.

The girl was raped by her father when she was a Class X student in 2009. He then took her to several places with the help of Omana and forced the child to have sex with people for money. The father is believed to have been paid Rs.8,000 by Aneesh and two others who gang raped the girl at Vengola in April 2010. The fifth and sixth accused, who were charged with indulging in gang rape along with Aneesh, were acquitted of the charge as the girl could not identify them at a test identification parade. They had been listed as accused after the girl saw them later at a police station and identified them, though she had first pointed out two others as her abusers.

The girl’s mother, Subaida, was also acquitted by the court. The child had testified that her father had pressured her mother to keeping silent about the crime.

The father had been serving a sentence for another case related to the child’s abuse while the judgment was passed in this case. Trial in several other cases is yet to be concluded.